


what’s the difference between plants and humans? (nothing)

by the_fifth_marauder101



Series: Tiny Tony Stories [4]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Angst, Angst No Happy Ending, Canon Divergence - Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Civil War Team Iron Man, Comics Thanos, Concerned Steve Rogers, Dialogue Heavy, Emotional Hurt, Gen, Heavy Angst, Hurt Tony Stark, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Not Steve Rogers Friendly, Other, POV Tony Stark, Plants, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Post-Civil War (Marvel), Pre-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Symbolism, Thor comes back to warn the Avengers, Tony Stark Feels, Tony Stark Has Issues, Tony Stark Is Not Ok, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Tony Stark-centric, author rants through tony stark once again, because mcu thanos' reasoning was stupid, no beta we die like men, pardoned Avengers, plants symbolism, thanos courting lady death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-16 05:20:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,065
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29448411
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_fifth_marauder101/pseuds/the_fifth_marauder101
Summary: ever think about how thanos and aliens view human lives? well, tony has, and he has some things to say~~~lovingly dubbed the Human vs Plant AU
Relationships: Steve Rogers & Tony Stark, Tony Stark & Avengers Team, can be read as Steve Rogers/Tony Stark, can be read as past Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Series: Tiny Tony Stories [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1929805
Comments: 10
Kudos: 57





	what’s the difference between plants and humans? (nothing)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [rhodee](https://archiveofourown.org/users/rhodee/gifts).



> this is for pavi, who is so supportive of my rambled fic ideas. I had to finish this one for you!

Sometimes, Tony wishes he feels nothing. He wishes that he was numb, unfeeling, detached. After everything that’s happened, his father; his childhood; the trama; the betrayal; and all the _pain,_ he wishes it would just stop. That he could live one day without a pit in his stomach, or a dull ache somewhere in his mortal prison. 

((There’s another part of him—the one that, once upon a time, pulled out the chair from the carefree and all nonsense young man he used to be, then stamped its leg on the foot of the ugly twisted side of him, born raw and aching with the searing pain of the arc reactor— that sneers. Taunting and screaming, swaddled in the blankets of his guilt. It makes him question, ask why he has the _audacity_ to be kind to himself. As if it’s is something he deserves. It asks him questions he doesn’t answer, won’t answer, can’t answer.))

Siberia left him not cold, but burnt out. A perpetual exhaustion. When he pushes himself harder and harder—as he typically does—his body pulses hot and cold. 

Worst of all is the crawling feeling that twists up from his gut. It wraps around his throat and holds there, pressing down and choking him with every spike of his weak heart. That’s what’s cold, that’s his souvenir from Siberia, that and the fucking scar he has. The one that fits Captain America’s shield perfectly, like a jigsaw puzzle. 

However, the globe doesn’t care about Tony Stark, about his aches and pains, his feelings. The world will never be the one to give to Tony, not a hand to hold, a tissue for his tears, or a fucking break. Not a break, not even death. Because Tony knows he can still give, he _should_ still give, after all, he did. All he took years ago. Taking and taking _lives_ through his own inactions. 

So he works, he swings out from his hospital bed, bandages wrapped tight around his artificial sternum. He builds, prosthetics (first for Rhodey, then for Barnes, then the world), armor (for Rhodey, Pepper, the _kid_ ), weapons (for himself, only himself, because at least then he can control the blood on his name). He tries to provide, money (donations, foundations of his own, direct help, go-fund-me’s, and petitions for causes), time, research, and resources. SI branches out farther and farther. 

He works. 

((He aches.))

* * *

It’s been a year. 

A year since Siberia, more since Ultron. Tony is a distraction. He aims for them—the press, the public—to combat him, rather than the new and blossoming young branches of the company.

And as he works on his own to create shields, large safe houses for citizens, he thinks.

He ponders, he wonders, he goes over ‘ _what ifs_ ’ and ‘ _maybes_ ’. He closes his eyes and sees the army fleets in space. He watches Earth be devoured whole, gasps at a large silhouette on a throne. He gazes at gleaming gems in a gauntlet on a purple fist. 

Two spaceships landed on Earth, after contacting Tony. 

When Tony sees them—Bruce and Thor—he feels that tightness in his throat again, this time highlighted by the phantom feeling of fingers press his windpipe. 

Tony doesn’t have much time to chat—he doesn’t want to either, so Rhodey does.

* * *

Captain America leads the room. Once upon a time, Tony might have, hell he might have been by his side. Maybe even near him, rather than among the crowd.  
  


Rogers sports a beard—kinda makes him look like a lumberjack. Tony doesn’t know how to feel about that. 

Being gathered in a room, labeled under the umbrella term of ‘The Avengers’ makes Tony feel everything and nothing all at once. He cannot pinpoint these emotions only that they’re overwhelmingly negative.

Tony sighs, gazing unseeingly at the tabletop, “Cap, do you ever stop to think about plants, about how we treat them?”

“About what?” Steve blinks. He has that wrinkle between his eyebrows, that pout in his lip, and Tony doesn’t know what he feels about his expression, but none of it is positive.

There are plants on the table. Aloe Vera and carnations. Yellow carnations. Fitting. 

“They’re living beings as well. Yeah, eating them is necessary for survival but—I mean we kill them for sport too.”

“We walk over grass, over the dead bodies of leaves. Hell, we build our homes—the places we live—from the corpses of trees! And what’s also fucked up—now that I think about it—is those same plants grow outside their now dead like.”

Then Tony smirks, self deprecatingly, “Look at y’all, you already think I’ve lost it. ‘Trees, grass? Why should we care about plants, Stark?’ I’ll tell you why. To aliens, to extraterrestrials, to _Thanos_ , we’re _plants_.” 

Tony looks down, squeezing his own leg before looking up, with a scoff, “For fucks sake, we even give cut flowers as a show of love. Oh, and we can reason it with sentience and evolution. But let me ask you this—and I don’t want you to think, to reason—just answer.”

“If plants rose up against us, humans, do you think they would win?”

Silence, nobody answers, hell he thinks some people aren’t even breathing. 

“Even though plants are still extraordinary in their own right. They, plants, make oxygen that allows us to survive; some vines that can take over buildings if not trimmed; trees that can grow virtually anywhere. They’ve evolved with traits to keep them alive as well! There are plants that are literally carnivores, others that are poison to animals; weed; coffee; hell poppy seeds are used in _meds_.”

“Plants have thorns, they have poison, and maybe they could develop maneuverability. And maybe they could gain animalistic sentience in the future.”

“But even with all that, we would still believe we would win. And to them, up there? To Thanos? We’re plants. Our guns, our missiles, our blades? Those are our vines, our thorns, the poison ivy that they’ll laugh at. Who cares that some people die from weed overdose or poison ivy? It’s just one life. And Thanos has an army to spare, he won’t care.”

“Thanos will pick us off one by one for death if he needs to. Because to him, we're just plants.”

“Do you see plants fighting back?”

* * *

**_~ FIN ~_ ** ****

* * *

**[Art - Instagram Link](https://www.instagram.com/p/CLSwqGAByS0/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link) **

**[Art - Tumblr link](https://the-fifth-marauder101.tumblr.com/post/643144761141772288/tony-stark-for-my-human-vs-plants-au-fic-art-of-my) **

**Author's Note:**

> Yellow carnations mean disappointment and rejection
> 
> ~~~
> 
> please let me know what you think in the comments and leave a kudo too!
> 
> love you!!!  
> ~vix
> 
> ~~~
> 
> come chat with me on my socials!
> 
> Main Tumblr: @the-fifth-marauder101
> 
> Marvel Tumblr: @the-aven-gen-zers
> 
> Insta: @the_fifth_marauder102


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